Today our new partners, Laurie and Jon, arrived in the morning from the US and Europe and shared breakfast with us at the hotel.

Later in the morning, we visited a local orphanage called Happy Home Orphanage here in Kathmandu. It was raining hard and a highlight moment, for me, Jonah, was seeing Norm in an enormous yellow poncho meet a gaggle of relatively tiny kids in their little dark blue ones. Big bird! Then big bird ran his first playshop and he was great!

Norm here: Today I had the privilege of leading my first full playshop. Standing in the center of the group of children was such an honor that’s it difficult to explain the myriad of feelings that ran through me. The faces of the children brought smiles, tears, and joy to my heart. They were so eager to participate! When they first arrived to the covered outside area where the playshop was held, it was raining very hard. I had my yellow poncho on waiting for their arrival. When I turned around to greet them I was met with perhaps 20+ 7 and 8 year olds, smiling faces gathering around me… they were all wearing blue ponchos and it looked as though I was Big Bird surrounded by a group of darling chicks (children). I couldn’t stop crying with joy for some time. I could feel a warmth exploding in my chest as I knelt down and hugged them. We began the playshop already a family. Often during the experience it felt as though they were leading me…they were!